March Monthly Update
To our wonderful church whānau,
It’s incredible to think that it is March already, halfway through Lent, with Easter just around the corner in a couple of weeks. God has been moving in beautiful ways within our church and it has been great to see inspired worship, water baptisms, small groups growing in depth and in number, the learning at Night School and the passion and willingness for people to pray and seek God.
We have been praying for a great many people in our church community, and will continue to pray as a church for all of our needs. You can find and share prayer needs on our Curate Church app (under ‘Prayer & Support’). It’s always encouraging to hear answers to prayer, so please do let us know! At the moment we are particularly praying for Maximus and his family. Maximus and his Mum Lisa have traveled to Madrid in Spain this week for highly specialised cancer treatment for a brain tumour. Let’s keep them in our prayers. You can also support them financially through this Give a Little page.
We have also started up a Men’s Prayer meeting every Wednesday morning from 7 - 7.30am at the Curate Offices (42c Tawa Street). If you’re able to make it, we’d love you to join us as we seek God together.
While we see God’s hand at work, we also continue to walk through some challenges. One of these challenges is where we are at financially. We are holding a special meeting regarding the church finances. There have been many difficulties the church has faced over the last few years and we want to bring you in as a congregation on where this has left us financially. The point of the meeting is not to ask for money but to be transparent and let you know some of the tough decisions we face going forward. There will be a time for questions as a part of the meeting and we hope you can make time to be there - 1pm, Curate Mount (37 Newton Street).
We know that Easter weekend, a bit like Christmas, is a really easy time to invite friends and family to a church gathering. We’d love to celebrate and ‘unfold’ the story of Easter with our church family and with people who are just beginning to walk on a faith journey. Pick up some invitation cards from church this week, and ask God who you should be inviting. You can find all the details at curatechurch.com/easter.
There are so many things coming up in the life of the church that we are looking forward to. Make sure you have a glance at the events below so you know what is happening.
Many blessings and much love,
Update Your Details
As we journey into a new year, we recognise that it is important to maintain an accurate database to better serve our valued church community. To ensure that we have the most up-to-date information about you, we kindly request you to review your records using the following link: www.curatechurch.com/update
There's a bunch of things coming up in the life of our community so make sure you check them out below. You can also see what is happening at www.curatechurch.com/calendar.
MEN’S PRAYER MEETING
7 - 7.30am Every Wednesday
We’re meeting every Wednesday morning at the Curate Offices (42c Tawa Street, Mount Maunganui) from 7 - 7.30am to pray for our church. If you are able to make it, we’d love to see you there.
SPECIAL MEETING RE: FINANCES
1pm, Sun 17th March
While there is so much life and signs of God's hand at work among us, we are facing some big challenges financially. There have been many difficulties the church has faced over the last few years and we want to bring you in as a congregation on where this has left us financially. We'll meet at 1pm (after the 11am gathering) in the auditorium (37 Newton Street).
SMALL GROUP LEADERS TRAINING
12.45pm, Sun 24th March
Do you lead a Small Group or are thinking about leading one? We’d love to connect, have some lunch together and talk about how we can lead life giving Small Groups. Please register so we can cater for food. If you are not sure about what is involved in leading a group, please contact groups@curatechurch.com.
GOOD FRIDAY & EASTER SUNDAY
10am, Fri 29th March • 9am & 11am, Sun 31st March
Join us for special Easter gatherings on both Good Friday and Easter Sunday. This is a wonderful time to invite friends and family to celebrate one of the key events in the Christian calendar. Pick up some invite cards from church over the next two weeks and ask God who you should be inviting! All details at curatechurch.com/easter.
ECAMP FOR INTERMEDIATES
Fri 29th March - Mon 1st April
Also happening Easter Weekend is a camp for Year 7 - 9 Students at Finlay Park in the Waikato. You can find out more information about eCamp here. Register your Year 7-9 Student with Curate here. Registrations close this Sunday!
CHURCH PICNIC AT KULIM PARK
Sun 7th April
Save the date, come along and hang out at a casual picnic lunch after each gathering. Bring your own food and a blanket to sit on. Kulim Park is in Otumoetai and has everything you need for a great picnic - lots of parking, open green spaces, BBQ’s, beach and playgrounds! This is a great time to be friendly, get to know some new people and enjoy time together.
PAMPER DAY
Mon 8th April
Our next Pamper Day is coming up soon where we will be loving on 12 precious ladies from Women’s Refuge. So we’re looking for some items for the goodie bags! Here’s 3 easy ways:
Donate $20 to cover the cost of one woman’s gratitude journal & slippers (email cares@curatechurch.com to arrange this).
Donate new, unused skincare products/cosmetics, candles, chocolates, etc.
Donate high quality clothes for us to resell at Recycle Boutique to help cover costs of each woman’s morning tea & lunch
Donated items can be popped in a bag labelled “Pamper Day” & dropped at the Info Area on Sundays or Curate Office Mon-Thu by 31 March. Alternatively, clothing items can be dropped directly to Recycle Boutique Bayfair & put onto the “Curate Church” account. Thank you for helping make these women feel loved & valued!
TERM 2 NIGHT SCHOOL BEGINS
Mon 29th April
We have had an amazing response to Night School this term, with a committed bunch of people digging deeper into Spiritual Practices. Next term we are offering more night school options (see below), all on a Monday Night, starting April 29th. To find out more about any of these courses and to register, head to curatechurch.com/learn.
Alpha - a nine week course that creates a space where people are excited to bring their friends for a conversation about life, faith and Jesus. This is a perfect course for people who are new Christians or are just beginning a journey of faith.
To Lead - become the leader you love to follow, working through the content of Joel’s first book, “to lead: A practical guide for leaders in Churches & faith-based organisations”.
Financial Freedom - whether you're drowning in debt or just looking to optimise your financial strategy, this course (put together by Dave Ramsey) is designed for all stages of life.
